Field of the Invention
This invention is directed to a closure assembly for a fluid loaded syringe or other medical device/container which includes structural features allowing it to be used independently, as a closure cap or syringe cap, connected in flow restricting relation to the access portion of a medical container or like device including, but not limited to a syringe. Alternatively, the closure assembly may be used in combination with an end cap and indicator member, and thereby serve as a part of a tamper evident cap (TEC) for the medical device/container or syringe. When used in either capacity, the structural and operative features of the closure cap or syringe cap provide for divergent connecting/disconnecting procedures including a push-on or snap-on type connection and a rotate-off type disconnection.
Description of the Related Art
In hospitals or other medical care facilities, it is very common for medical doctors and other authorized medical personnel to order that a patient be given a drug or medication by injection. In fact, it is currently estimated that more than 16 billion injections are administered on a worldwide basis in any given year.
As a result, it is becoming relatively common in hospital settings for a number of syringes to be pre-loaded or filled by a pharmacist, or other authorized personnel within a hospital or similar facility, at an appropriate location for subsequent dispensing to one or more patients. The pharmacy or other location where syringes are filled can and often will be located in a remote part of the hospital, relative to the patient care area where the injection is to be administered. In some cases, the loading of syringes occurs in another building or facility entirely, often referred to as “third party pharmacies.” This may even be a growing trend among hospitals to limit certain costs. Regardless, a syringe filling station at a large medical facility may resemble a factory, from which drug loaded syringes are delivered to a large number of nurse's stations in multiple hospital or medical buildings. Because many nurse's stations are typically remotely located from a syringe filling station, a loaded syringe is quite often given to another person for delivery to a nurse's station, for subsequent dosing of the patient by qualified personnel. From the foregoing, it may be understood that during the course of loading a syringe with a drug, and delivering the loaded syringe to a nurse's station or to a patient, the syringe can easily be handled by numerous personnel.
Also, and especially in the case of a very expensive drug or an addictive drug, there is some danger that a pre-loaded syringe will be tampered with by a person seeking to improperly gain access to the drug. A resulting danger also exists relating to the possibility of inappropriately substituting saline solution or some other unauthorized substance for the intended medication originally loaded into the syringe. Thus, the growing use of syringes which are pre-loaded with a drug presents another problem in that it is important to know if the pre-loaded syringe has, or has not, been tampered with, exposed to contamination or otherwise compromised.
The benefits of using a pre-filled syringe and the ability to readily determine whether or not it has been tampered with, are abundantly clear. At the same time, however, drugs and medications are specific to each particular patient's disorder or disease being treated, and in addition, interactions between drugs and medications given to a patient incorrectly can have serious and deadly consequences. It is, therefore, important to know that a particular medication being injected is, in fact, the drug that was prescribed by the treating physician, and that it has not been replaced by another compound. Moreover, some drugs can have harmful effects in large doses. Accordingly, it is also important to ensure that the proper dosage is followed, as prescribed. Since pre-filled syringes are prepared in advance of being delivered and used, they may be loaded carefully by a pharmacist or other similarly qualified individual to ensure the appropriate medication and dose is prepared. This reduces errors on injection by nurses or physicians who may be in a stressful or time-sensitive situation and may not have the luxury of verifying the correct medication or measuring out a dose, particularly small doses, from a source vial.
There has historically been a problem, however, of knowing if a sealed, preloaded syringe has, or has not, been compromised by it being tampered with or if it might otherwise have a loss of sterility or have become contaminated. This and related types of problems have been described in the inventor's own previously granted U.S. Pat. No. 4,667,837 and in other patents, such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,328,474. Despite attempts in the past to prevent unauthorized access to syringe(s) pre-loaded with a drug or medication, it is understood that some problems continue to exist in this field of art and there remains an ongoing need for further improvements, despite the introduction of inventive products according to the above-noted two patents and others.
For instance, there remain problems of manufacturing such products in a manner which is relatively easy and inexpensive, as well as some problems involved with the assembly and placement onto a drug loaded syringe, such as at a drug filling station. Other problems exist relative to maintaining the sterility during storage at the manufacturing facility of some caps for syringes, and during transport of them to a hospital or other medical facility, during storage of them at a hospital or other medical facility, including any transport to a nursing station and ultimately, to a patient care area.
Accordingly, there is a need in this area for an improved closure assembly having the structural versatility to be used as a closure cap or closure cap or syringe cap or as a tamper evident cap (TEC), wherein the proposed closure assembly can be used in either capacity with standard or conventional pre-loaded syringe in a manner which overcomes problems and or disadvantages of the type set forth above. The development of any such improved closure assembly would preferably offer certain features such as, but not limited to, the cooperative structuring of a connecting structure which enables the proposed closure assembly to be connected to and removed from the nozzle or access portion of a preloaded syringe by a “push-on” connection and a “rotate-off” disconnection. In addition, if any such improved, closure assembly were developed, it would ideally be structurally and operatively reliable, while still remaining relatively easy and cost effective to make and assemble, in order to facilitate widespread use and acceptance through out the medical profession.
From the foregoing, one might appreciate that the present invention seeks to address such problems and others associated with closure assemblies for preloaded syringes including, but not limited to, tamper evident caps and luer lock caps during their manufacture, assembly and/or use.